Nemanja Matic image 31

Nemanja Matic Serbia flag

2019-20 Performances


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5.9 Season Average Rating
Appearances
34
Goals
1
Assists
3
Yellow cards
4
Red cards
1
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mu4c_20le

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Again, he is great when we're on the front foot which is getting more and more common now when Pogba and Bruno are playing together. If we had Fred/Andreas and McT out there and the midfield gets overrun, he will again look like he's done. Good news is it gives us some time to search for a replacement, it's not a priority right now as he's doing very well.
 

FrankDrebin

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----------Matic-----------
Pogba-----Bruno

The most balanced midfield,and one with great ability, I've seen at United since Hargreaves,Scholes and Carrick.
 

Schmeichel's Cartwheel

Correctly predicted Italy to win Euro 2020
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There’s not many better DMs in world football on current form. Ndidi? Partey? I’ll take another season of Matic thanks. Camavinga or Tonali should be his eventual replacement down the line.
 

AJ VII

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Another fantastic performance by Matic. Unbelievable turnaround, had given up on him last season, but he has been crucial for us the last months. Praying that he can keep the form gong.
 

Adamsk7

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He’s been brilliant. I actually think he was performing well prior to the lockdown too and kept our midfield together at times before Bruno and with Pogba out. Of course now that he has class players immediately next to him, he’s looking more like the Matic of his first season and at Chelsea and THAT player is a world class DM.
Right now, that three of Matic, Pogba and Fernandes is possibly the best midfield in the league, which is a joke considering it’s been our weak point for sooooo long!
 

bond19821982

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Think he is very underrated because he played for defensive managers. I mean, if he were to play for a possession based team he would be considered one of the best. He is better than Rodri and would definitely challenge for a spot in that City lineup.
 

Chairman Steve

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Provided THE pass of the match on that third goal. I wish he was 25-26 year old version of himself instead of being on the cusp of 32... otherwise that midfield three of him, Bruno and Pogba is formidable and would make any team tread carefully.
 

AltiUn

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Tell you what, we'll have a job replacing him when the time comes to it. Sorry for ever doubting you Nemanja. His pass for that goal was out of this world.
 

Andersonson

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Still has plenty to offer on this level. Let him and McTominay battle it one more season and see what happens.

Use the funds available on a right winger and a CB.
 

MDFC Manager

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Tell you what, we'll have a job replacing him when the time comes to it. Sorry for ever doubting you Nemanja. His pass for that goal was out of this world.
Yeah, McT and Fred offer decent backup to him but we may well struggle to replace him when the time comes.
 

Bastian

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Glorious tonight. He's easily got a top class season left in him, if not two.
 

BenitoSTARR

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We need a Matic back up as much as we need a Bruno back up
Koopmeiners he does exactly what Matic can.

Forget Zakaria look at how well the team does with a positionally sound line breaker at DM. We don’t need dynamic play we need a calming influence.
 

Martialfc

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He’s a quality player always has been. Streets ahead of Mctominay and Fred. I like the trio of Pog Bruno and him. So glad to see Ole stick with his strongest lineup been years since a manager would do that under us.
 

LoneStar

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That pass alone earns him a 10/10 today :D

He’s been class since the start of the year, and especially after the covid break. Helps keep a nice tempo and calms things down. Him, Pogba and Fernandes make for a great midfield with equal skill, finesse and work ethic. This has been the main reason why we have been so dominant recently.

I hope Ole plays him well, making sure he’s not burnt out before the season ends. Not going to be easy to get a replacement in the coming seasons.
 

criticalanalysis

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Think he is very underrated because he played for defensive managers. I mean, if he were to play for a possession based team he would be considered one of the best. He is better than Rodri and would definitely challenge for a spot in that City lineup.
He's technically infallible, if the set up is correct.

First touch, press resistent (that stretched long arm out is just :drool:), defensively a monster within a certain coverage range, can carry the ball/dribble and has very good passing abiliity.To top it off, he's not a passive player. He will happily sweep up but again depending on the conditions, if the pass and tempo is required he will pick the right option.

On a technical level I don't see him inferior to the likes of Busquets/Alonso/Martinez/Fernandinho etc.

I still think we have been 'lucky' in that teams have been uncharacteristically dour with their pressing and giving us far too much respect and worry against a team that will exploit our defensive transitions. Pogba has been quite disciplined and made evident defensive contributions but I fear when the turnover is high and we face a competent team than can string several passes for a counter attack.

As such I'd still like to see Fred in this set up and see how he copes because tbh I don't think it would have made a difference (because of the opposition) if he and Matic had swapped minutes.
 
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Brightonian

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MUST protect his legs. All season he's been capable of this after spells out of the team. Then we overplay him and he looks burnt out again.

Give him the whole game off against Bournemouth. Start Fred with Pogba and Bruno.
 

Eckers99

Michael Corleone says hello
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That pass in the lead up to the third goal. Didn't know he had that in him.
People seem to say something like this about him after every game. Technically, he's a very good footballer, so flashes of quality should be expected and not remotely surprising. He's been class for ages.
 

Web of Bissaka

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Awesome again, filthy involvements in the counter and plenty of our attackings really.

Put in plenty more penetrating passes than his normal performances.
Sky high confidence.

That said, two moments in the first half where he made risky decisions which didn't worked,
  1. dribbled in a tight space, deep in our half with only Lind and Mag at the back, lost the ball, Brighton countered quickly, thankfully it was a foul but I've seen that kind of foul given plenty of times as legit by refs.
  2. went for a strong press near the left touchline, missed, Brighton had many spaces in midfield to exploit. Thankfully their attacks get slowed down by Shaw.
Would be interesting how he fare, once we faced a far better quality side with the midfield trio Brun-Pog-Matic.
 
Joined
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Awesome again, filthy involvements in the counter and plenty of our attackings really.

Put in plenty more penetrating passes than his normal performances.
Sky high confidence.

That said, two moments in the first half where he made risky decisions which didn't worked,
  1. dribbled in a tight space, deep in our half with only Lind and Mag at the back, lost the ball, Brighton countered quickly, thankfully it was a foul but I've seen that kind of foul given plenty of times as legit by refs.
  2. went for a strong press near the left touchline, missed, Brighton had many spaces in midfield to exploit. Thankfully their attacks get slowed down by Shaw.
Would be interesting how he fare, once we faced a far better quality side with the midfield trio Brun-Pog-Matic.
Yeah, remember that 1st situation, he was extremely lucky with that call but otherwise class. Thankfully, of the teams we have yet to face in the league none of them have great midfields. Leicester's is decent but they're not in great form anyways. That trio will be tested in the FA Cup though, can absolutely see Ole playing safe and adding a bit of steel to the midfield in Fred or McTominay vs. Chelsea, whether through a diamond or replacing one of the three.
 

kouroux

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I wrote Matic off at the start of the season. I was wrong. The lockdown came at the wrong time for some teams and players. For Matic that three month mid-season break has given him a second wind. All of a sudden he looks like he did when he first came to Man Utd. Dominant in the middle of the park, effective at dropping into defence to plug gaps, deceptively good on the ball and intelligent in his use of it. No complaints. I just hope he can pass on his know how to the other midfielders at the club. Cos we have no other defensive midfielder in the squad who can operate at his level.
Honestly, he was already superb before the lockdown
 

croadyman

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I know I am probably going to get laughed at for this but Matic's pass for that third goal tonight was reminiscent of Silva's for City's sixth goal in the famous 6-1 thrashing at Old Trafford
 

Craig Ward

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Dec 30, 2016
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The unsung hero of our midfield.

We look better when he anchors the midfield. As decent as Fred and McTom are, for that specific DM role Matic is the best option there.

Fred and McTom allow us to play a different way and are good players but currently Matic has that spot nailed on. Good to see when a player pays his way back into the team. He's done well.

He hit a bad run of form but fair play to him for getting back to it
 

Fracture90

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That pass for our 3rd goal was something! Overall great performance but not impeccable imo, he made 1 or 2 bad decisions.
 

Master Yoda

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Cant post media apparently but another great stat showing by Statman Dave.
Matic - First half vs Brighton:

100% tackles won
95% pass accuracy (38/40)
3 ball recoveries
0 fouls
 
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